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HUMANE  CIVILIZATION  WORLDWIDE  FOUNDATION  (HCW)

Dear Reader:
How will you be remembered if you do not pursue what has a chance to reverse the horrific developments, not only slow them? How will young people think about us – today we contribute to weather catastrophes getting much worse, the suffering and deaths steadily increasing. Incentives, inventiveness and some idealism will not halt the vicious cycles that drive global warming.
Please join our unique movement, humanecivilization.org, become members with a $10 or 20 contribution, and inform all the people you know about our work. Donate Now & Join Our Cause – see also the 1,700 word summary http://humanecivilization.org/about-us-donations/
Is it not obvious that our civilizations and the world as we know it can only be saved if we create a movement that will demand emergency government actions as radical as during WWII? We, the USA, must be leaders since we are the main culprits concerning the climate crisis. Our government needs plans and get corporations to work, without profits, on government contracts that will effectively decrease atmospheric greenhouse gases, halt vicious cycles, and start reversing global warming without delay.
We propose as an outline of plans: Governments, working with public-private partnership non-profit enterprises, must:
– Halt the beef industry that today uses about 38,000,000 km2 (which is close to 80% of all agricultural land); much of that land must be reforested, some land producing construction lumber and bamboo; natural prairies and wetlands have to be restored and expanded, etc.
– Stop food waste and have mostly plant-based diets and lab-grown milk, fish and meat.
– Create a highly efficient transportation systems, having mostly rail lines, tiny light-rail to high speed, and ultra-light vehicles for short commutes; not more cars and planes.
– Build mostly with wood and bamboo, not steel and concrete.
– Use extreme white surfaces and apply passive solar principles to minimize air conditioning needs.
– Halt data centers and the wasteful, dangerous A.I. developments.
– Curb consumerism, take care of people’s basic needs, restrict bank-lending, issue basic incomes.
At the same time we have to greatly decrease mining that poisons areas and destroys ecosystems.
We must develop ways to prevent the decomposing of dead plant matter and organic trash to keep its carbon sequestered rather than returned into the atmosphere. This can be accomplished by keeping it very dry and/or cold, buried several meters deep where the material stays dry, sunk into deep lakes or artificial deep ponds where bog-like conditions are created, etc. Trash incinerators may be modified to only sterilize and dry the material so its carbon content stays sequestered; etc.
People may argue, “We don’t know how bad it will be.” Is not knowing how likely it is that your office building will be destroyed in an earthquake a reason for building it cheaply, not according to our best knowledge in earthquake-proof building technologies? Do you have time to vote – if so, should you not also find time to do something that is contributing to eventually – better sooner than later – reverse the dire developments? We can work on changes while the present government is out of touch; it will not control politics for ever!
Let us all contemplate how consumerism failed to make us a happy people – living ethically, compassionately, more simply, caring, giving, forgiving, and cooperating more than competing promotes health and happiness.
Thank you for your interest in our work,
Cordially,
the co-founder of the educational non-profit corporation Humane Civilization Worldwide

The above has been written as a newsletter; we wish to encourage you to seriously think about the future. We all are getting older and younger people will look up to us, ponder our lives’ work and our efforts to actually halt and reverse the vicious cycles – for their sake.
More summary statements below.
Humane Civilization Worldwide has presently no discussion meetings but we consider-plan to start this fall book groups, discussing mostly books about climate and human behavior/human nature.
Do you have any suggestions for our organization?

We have been studying human behaviors and human nature since the 1960s, also human institutions. A goal has been to think of humans without considering present civilziations and cultures and to design ‘ideal,’ institutions that promote peace, health and happiness in everybody; the image of an ‘ideal’ society is then to guide how present instiutions should change. Probably most important are economic, political, and educational instiutitons. Much that is in this website is old, needing to be revised and shortened. There are also texts about abuse-addiction. Recently the climate crisis, the destabilization of climates and continued global warming, became the most urgen issue to be addressed.

You may CONTACT us at:  hae.hcw@gmail.com  to give us feedback, get on our mailing list, or request a speaker – please write to us, and please WIDELY DISTRIBUTE INFORMATION about this major effort towards comprehensive plans that may save collapsing ecosystems and our civilizations – please help us put it into social media, etc. Thank you.

Climate Emergency    Appeal to all readers      ABOUT US  –  MISSION  –  BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION ABOUT FOUNDERS OF HCW, AUTHORS OF WEBSIT  –   ORGANIZATIONS the founders of HCW support   Recent HCW presentation- discussion meetings

Dear activists for reversing global warming and creating humane civilizations – become a member http://humanecivilization.org/about-us-donations/ [See also page on Climate Emergency]
The issue is climate destabilization, not climate change to which we can adapt – trying to adapt is like a dog chasing a truck! People saying they have no time to work towards an effective, radical response is like not making time to vote.
 Everybody can participate in promoting a solution to the climate crisis by informing themselves, and particularly by informing others, maybe making them aware of this website.
 Think TREES: Governments must see to it that, worldwide, 2-4 trillions TREES will be plante, AND we need TREES of information distribution: people who studied issues informing the people they know, and these informing many more people, etc.
 Most important is recognizing, at this point we are on a path to rapidly worsening climate destabilization with much more unpredictable and more deadly weather catastrophes, but also that there is a feasible solution, a way to reverse global warming and many of its consequences.
 Activists and writers still focus on present CO2 releases; however, the high atmospheric greenhouse gas levels and consequent feedback loops are the actual culprit (since 1850, CO2 and methane levels increased 50% and 100% respectively). To reverse global warming, probably by far most effective is ‘re-vegetating’ the earth. A fifth of vegetation was lost since 1850; ‘re-vegetation’ of much of the agricultural land that is used today  for beef production could reverse global warming in the coming decades; over 3/4 of all agricultural land is used today for beef production (grazing land and animal feed production).
 Everybody can make a difference, working on moving public opinion. We need effective action and every day of delay will cause much suffering and many deaths. Influencing public opinion is better than voting – with voting its “all or nothing” – if on the winning side, you would not have needed to vote; if on the loosing side, your vote did not make a difference. With influencing public opinion, everything that can move the time of effective action a little forward saves many lives.
 The people must demand radical emergency government actions to halt our rapidly sliding towards complete destabilization of climates and overstepping points of no return – Our government must lead as decisively as it did during WWII. Reforms must utilize all approaches that promise a significant impact, support further research, and speed up the broad application of valuable technologies and inventions – as first priority, re-vegetation, reversing the loss of vegetation, appears most effective and most feasible (China may set an example: it has huge projects of re-vegetation at the edges of the deserts of N and W China). Private actions towards a sustainable economy will never be able to respond adequately in time. As vicious cycles that promote global warming and the destabilization of the climate accelerate, more and more land is becoming uninhabitable, the number of climate refugees is growing to hundreds of millions, and we must expect worldwide violence with modern civilizations collapsing, if there is not an effective government response.
 Obviously, ‘net zero’ or ‘carbon neutrality’ will hardly change how melting snow and superficial ice increase sun light absorption, how melting permafrost and drying wetlands and forests release greenhouse gases, and how ecosystems will keep dying. Why are people expecting that minimizing their carbon footprint will change developments?
 Governments, working with public-private partnership nonprofit enterprises, must reform infrastructure, industries, transportation systems and land management. Governments must address dangerous, wasteful A.I. developments and consumerism, restricting bank loans and credit. Consumerism, which does not make us happy, is a core problem: people wanting cars, beef, everything bigger, etc., even if they cannot afford it and it drives them to go into debt, which is itself a tragic problem. Today, most agricultural land produces beef – much of it must be returned to a natural state of forests, prairies, wetlands, etc. so that it will again absorb huge amounts of CO2; we must also cultivate bamboo, trees for building lumber, kelp, and other fast-growing and commercially valuable plants. We need rail lines including tiny narrow-track light and ultra-light rail; additionally ultra-light vehicles, not cars; use wood and bamboo instead of steel and concrete, use extreme white paints and  passive solar principles, move to mostly plant-based diets, including lab-produced milk, salmon, and other meat. Governments must curb consumerism and bank lending and restrict acttivities of data centers and wasteful, potentially very dangerous, artificial intelligence developments.
 There is a broad discomfort with developments; this comes in addition to increasing mental health problems of young people. People of a wide range of ages, seek fantasy literature and computer games, they distract themselves in unhealthy ways, and eco-anxiety is becoming a world-wide mental health crisis. However most proposed ‘treatments’ appear to miss the point. People need to be well informed so they can do something that is not only symbolic but makes a difference.
 People need education in practical ethics, creating a culture of cooperating, giving, forgiving, being broadly considerate and compassionate, also towards beings that are very different and/or distant, and considering the future of the world; these attitudes are contagious and promote supportive communities. Inadequately addressed ethics issues are psychological-behavioral abuse-addiction behaviors, including intense competitiveness, risk-taking, (computer-)gambling, consumerism, particularly credit buying, pursuing unethical fantasies and conspiracy theories, giving into our inherent fascination with human suffering and cruelties, and pursuing wealth, power, and/or fame. Also broadly missing is education in basic and applied happiness research.
 Living more simply, ethically, closer to each other and to nature promotes health and happiness.
 See page on Climate Emergency

HCW Climate Crisis discussion meetings. Presently we do not conduct formal meetings; we try to meet in coffe shops or other places with indiviudals and small groups. If living in or close to Travis County, please contacdt us for setting up a meeting – hae.hcw@gmail.com.
Previous HCW presentation-discussion meetings: Link: https://humanecivilization.org/discussion-groups/ ‎

HCW is a 501(c)(3) Operating Foundation primarily doing educational work (Texas 11/2017) This website is a daft document with ongoing editing, revisions and additions.
Because of the urgency to address the Climate Crisis, the  Page on the Climate Emergency  Chapter on CLIMATE EMERGENCY – QUALITY OF LIFE has recently been updated/revised. Mitigating, adjusting and adapting to climate change? We can and must prevent sliding into “climate hell” and start reversing global warming without delay. Climate change is not like an incurable disease that needs palliative care, it is part of our misdirected cancer-like economic growth and our leaders’ lack of broad concerns and responsibility. Pursuing a simpler, ethical, ecologically-minded lifestyle coincides with pursuing health and happiness..
 HCW is basically about ethics, creating a culture of giving, forgiving, cooperating, being broadly compassionate and considering our future and beings that are distant and very different; in place of vindicating, ruthlessly competing, ‘us-against-them’ thinking, and shortsightedly pursuing material goods and power. People are to learn and practice empathy, attempts to understand others’ problems, painsm, etc. ‘Us-versus-them’ thinking in friendly relationships can be problematic because with “them” being very different, people have problems being empathetically compassionate.

• Cultures, the institutions of civilizations, largely shape people’s character, how we deal with our natural propensities and express instincts. Cultural institutions are the main cause of hostilities between individuals, groups, and nations and of the harm to the world’s ecosystems.
• THE CLIMATE EMERGENCY demands immediate bold government-directed actions: minimizing use of resource and energy and release of greenhouse gases, moving to mostly plant-based diets, sequestering huge amounts of carbon, etc. Pursuing lives that are more simple and ethical, halting advertisement- and greed-driven consumerism, coincides with a pursuit of health, happiness, and longevity. The probably most valuable thing individuals can do is influence influential people, write to them, encourage them to clarify what is needed as we are sliding towards “climate hell” (in medicine, we stopped hiding catastrophic findings, and patients and families, following an initial doom feeling, generally respond well; and humans embrace sacrifices that are meaningful). We all must urge government-led action, as radical as the U.S.’ response to WWII, stopping “business-as-usual-with-incentives.”
• Improved institutions have to cultivate ethics by positively influencing people’s learning and thought patterns, emotions, and character development. HCW works on creating plans, blueprints, or model frameworks that are based on science and ethical principles and should guide peaceful reforms of economic systems, governments and other institutions.

[defining the term ‘Broad science-base ethics’: it addresses what is perceived as good for individuals, society, and the world, minimizing all senseless suffering, improving people’s quality of life, while considering human nature, neurosciences, etc.]

If you find this website interesting and stimulating thoughts, if it addresses what you are concerned about (such as the climate crisis), please share it with friends and acquaintances – mention it in social media posts!
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You-tube presentation.           Abuse-Addiction articles           BLOG:  political      abuse-addiction.

Contents,  Principal endeavor of HCW,  Mission Statement    –     Preface  /  Introduction   

Donate Now & Join Our Cause

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ORGANIZATIONS the founders of HCW support

UNICEF USA – https://www.unicefusa.org/
U N World Food Programme (WFP) – https://www.wfp.org/
United Nations Population Fund  (UNFPA)  –  https://www.unfpa.org/
United Nations Refugee Agency (United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR) –  https://www.unrefugees.org/

Fòs Feminista – https://fosfeminista.org/ (previously Planned Parenthood International Western Hemisphere)
The Carter Center – https://www.cartercenter.org/
Planned Parenthood Federation of America – https://www.plannedparenthood.org/
Planned Parenthood of Greater Texas – https://www.plannedparenthood.org/planned-parenthood-greater-texas
Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders USA (MSF) – https://www.doctorswithoutborders.org/
Amnesty International USA – https://www.amnestyusa.org/
Save the Children – https://www.savethechildren.org/
International Rescue Committee – https://www.rescue.org/
OXFAM – https://www.oxfamamerica.org/
Partners in Health – https://www.pih.org
Grassroots Interanational – https://grassrootsonline.org/
Tostan – https://tostan.org/
Union of Concerned Scientists – https://www.ucsusa.org/

Some organizations working towards ameliorating or halting global warming:
Draw Down (Paul Hawken) – https://www.drawdown.org
Climate Regeneration (Paul Hawken) – https://www.climateregeneration.org
Climate Restoration (Peter Fiekowsky) – https://foundationforclimaterestoration.org/
Fridays For Future (Greta Thunberg) – https://fridaysforfuture.org/
The Climate Reality Project (Al Gore) – https://www.climaterealityproject.org/
350.org (Bill McKibben) – https://www.350.org/
Citizens’ Climate Lobby – https://citizensclimatelobby.org

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Re. mission and goals of HCW: People and organizations worldwide have to cooperate in improving national and international institutions:

• THE ECONOMIC INSTITUTIONS NEED URGENT REFORMS: governments must create money to fund public-private partnership nonprofit enterprises that will restructure economic activities, and lending by financial institutions must be severely restricted. People need a guaranteed income and good safety nets. Taxation, particularly high taxes on any greenhouse gas releases. must powerfully influence the private sector.
• Developments must be guided by the goals of society, not by prospects of profits for investors.
• ALL FORMS OF BIRTH CONTROL (including abortions) must be readily and confidentially available to women worldwide.
•  Unethical uses of the internet and of artificial intelligence must be reined in, particularly surveillance and data gathering, and the Ponzi-scheme-like bitcoin – these waste much computing resources and energy.
• All education, formal and informal must teach empathy, a forgiving attitude, and the pursuit of peace – broad compassionate empathy must replace replace vindictive and ‘us-against-them’ thinking with.
• HCW aspires to create a worldwide movement that studies and addresses recognized problems and pursues worldwide cooperation in establishing civilizations with humane condition and protecting the environment.
• HCW works on creating plans, blueprints, or model frameworks that are based on science and ethical principles and should guide peaceful reforms of economic systems, governments and other institutions of civilizations. Institutions are to bring the best qualities out of individuals. This draft presents a fairly comprehensive framework of proposed institutions: economic, social, governmental, etc. and an evaluation of ethical principles.

The last meeting was Monday 1/12/2026, 6:15 to 7:45 p.m.  at Twin Oaks Library continuing discussion of meeting of 10/21/2025 (see below). Book we will shortly review the classic book on solution addressing the climate crisis: Drawdown, the Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming edited by Paul Hawken
If you have been attending or believe our efforts to be important even though you could not attend – please spread the word about Humane Civilization Worldwide (humanecivilization.org) and our broad perspective on the problem; and/or please give me feedback  (hae.hcw@gmail.com).
Please let me know if you are interested in attending future presentation-discussion groups, as announced, and if yes, are other times or places than what announced, would be better for you?
Please remember:
– The world IS sliding rapidly towards ‘climate hell.’ Even if accomplished, the ‘energy transition to all-electric’ will not halt global warming.
This is the worst crisis in human history, requiring actions that are as decisive as the response to World War II.
Who will help move public opinion towards demanding needed responses to this crisis?
– I cannot find any proposals from NGOs, activists, scientists, and authors describing the comprehensive emergency actions that are needed, and an acknowledgment that only governments can enact actions that may save modern civilizations, “the world as we know it.”
Is anybody, other than we, creating a thought-through draft of a blueprint for action?.
These are a few key issues:.
– The world needs to move from using most agricultural land for beef production to planting much more trees, etc. reverse the loss of much vegetation, improving local climates and bringing atmospheric greenhouse gases far down.
– More efforts are needed to slow or prevent the decomposing (rotting) of dead plants and other organic material.
– Save resources and energy: efficient transportation (particularly dense networks of narrow-track light rail lines, and ultra-light slow commuter vehicles), NOT 1.5 billion electric steel cars; building mostly with wood and bamboo, not concrete and steel; moving to mostly plant-based diets; use of extreme-white paint instead of more air conditioning; rein in data centers and misguided, dangerous A.I. developments, etc.
– People must also learn, living more simply, ethically, ecologically, we will be healthier and happier.

Do you care about the future of our young people and the most affected poor?
If so, please learn about the severity of the climate crisis and outlines of actions that can reverse global warming. Talk about it with everybody you know. Please explain: the people must demand radical, broad actions from the government. – More explanations in this website (humanecivilization.org)

Meeting: Tuesday 10/21 6:15 to 7:45 p.m. at Twin Oaks Library

Is there another way to reverse global warming and save the world as we know it?
There will be classical piano music at the beginning and during a short break;
We are also glad to meet with individuals or small groups in other places / times – please write to hae.hcw@gmail.com.

The main problem is the high atmospheric greenhouse gas levels, not the greenhouse gases we are releasing now.
The high CO2 levels and feedback loops will worsen weather catastrophes and the destabilization of the climates. The benefits of ‘net zero’ or ‘carbon neutrality’ are minimal.
Most effective natural ways to decrease atmospheric CO2 – we suggest:
1. Greatly increasing natural vegetation, particularly reforesting much land that is today used for beef production, which covers 75-80% of all agricultural land; and increasing land of natural prairies and wetlands; also planting commercially useful trees and bamboo, and cultivate algae. Lush vegetation improves local climates, cooling areas, promoting clouds, etc.
2. Efforts to prevent the burning and decomposing of dead plants.
3. Saving energy and resources in every way possible, creating energy efficient, healthier transportation system, promote plant-based diets, curb consumerism by restricting consumer credit, addressing data gathering and processing, abuses of AI, bitcoin, etc.
To accomplish needed changes is it not obvious that only the government can enact the major needed actions?
Actions must be as decisive as during WWII. The people must demand the changes, but first, activists and NGOs must get out of their niches and cooperate, participate in educating people regarding the urgency of emergency government actions, and also show how living more simply and ecologically minded will promote health and happiness.

Meeting: Monday September 9, 6:15-7:45 pm at Twin Oaks Library
Addressing the climate crisis: personal, present politics, long-term pursuit of effective comprehensive actions

Addressing the climate crisis on different levels – they include: 1. personal,  2. present politics, 3. long-term pursuit of effective comprehensive actions:
– Working on the long-term pursuit of effective actions is by far most important
– Political actions, lobbying present representatives, are very valuable, but will not reverse global warming.
– Personal actions may set examples and help us better understand the issues of climate and ethics.
We may already think of adapting to the envisioned future: decreasing consumerism and exposure to screens and AI, vegetarian diet, mostly local foods, fewer children and pets, particularly less large dogs, less car and airplane travel, planting trees, etc.
Grassroots efforts may address present politics but it is much more important that there will be broader education and that efforts focus on people and climate activist groups cooperating; we must create a powerful movement, which, when the time is right, demands comprehensive, radical government actions.

Meeting of August 4/2025:
Grassroots efforts must work towards a movement that will, when the time is right, demand radical, comprehensive government actions that will start reversing global warming. People have to discuss the issues and form educated opinions. It appears obvious: business as usual with incentives is not adequate; private enterprises and NGOs cannot halt global warming.

Will you be part of our grassroots organization? (no volunteer work or money involved!).
Please join our grassroots efforts. Please forward this message broadly and encourage friends and acquaintances to join our organization by writing to hae.hcw@gmail.com to get on our mailing list, and maybe make a small donation.
Please write to us if you wish to be removed from our mailing list.

The goal: start to reverse global warming. We must do much more than pursue “Net Zero” or “carbon neutrality,” as is often suggested.
It seems that the field of climate activism and sciences lacks cohesion – many isolated projects, most people appearing narrowly focused(?). Some obviously effective measures are not discussed – this is a main issue we want to address.
For grassroots efforts to grow, people should discuss issues, form educated opinions, and contact news media, authors, and NGO leaders.

We believe grassroots efforts must coalesce to a nation-, later worldwide, movement that, when the time is right, will demand the comprehensive, radical government actions that will start reversing global warming; the government emergency actions have to be as decisive as the response to Japan’s attack of Pearl Harbor and Hitler’s aggression.

To very shortly summarize our findings and proposals: Climate scientists understand that the climate crisis is rapidly worsening. The main culprit are the very high levels of atmospheric greenhouse gases. We suggest that the most effective ways to reduce atmospheric CO2 levels are:
1. Greatly increasing the world’s vegetation. A trillion trees, bamboo, algae and many other fast-growing plants must be cultivated.
2. Preventing the decomposing and burning of plants grown for carbon sequestration and other dead plants. To prevent the decomposing of dead plants and other organic materials, such as most landfill trash, the material must be kept very dry and/or cold, inundated in stagnant water, covered with earth or peat moss, or sunk into deep freshwater lakes, or dead zones or very cold parts of the sea.
3. Saving energy and resources in every way possible.
“Net Zero” or “carbon neutrality” is not the issue – feedback loops or vicious cycles contribute much more to continued global warming than recent and present releases of CO2 and methane. A transition to renewable energy and ending fossil fuel burning is valuable but will take many decades and is not addressing the key issues of the climate crisis. Presently pursued technologies to capture and sequester carbon are too expensive and hard to scale up.
Many other proposals of HCW will help to halt the causes and consequences of global warming:
– Addressing bank lending and consumerism, the abuses of artificial intelligence and of data gathering and analyzing; outlawing the extremely wasteful, ethically questionable crypto currencies, etc.
– Building with wood and bamboo; using white cooling paint and passive solar approaches instead of more air conditioning; mostly plant-based nutrition; much more energy efficient transportation systems; etc.
– Irrigating drought-damaged forests; very widely using wind-powered snow making machines to protect or expand glaciers, Arctic ocean pack ice, and snow fields.

Broad education should address the severity of the climate crisis, by sciences supported responses, and issues of ethics, health and happiness research. With much less consumerism, living more simply, ethically, closer to nature, with more interpersonal connectedness, and with meaningful goals, people will be healthier and happier.

Meetings, June 14 noon and June 30 6:30 pm, 2025
The Climate Crisis – is it a “frog in the pot” problem? Presentation and Discussion.

Are we like the frog in the pot? No response because the pot is heating slowly? Is there no way to prevent “climate hell”?
There is no hope, if there is no emerging mass movement that will, when the time is right, demand a government response that is radical, effective and comprehensive.
There is much false optimism about renewable energy and an ‘energy transition.’ Today’s greenhouse gas releases are not the central problem – the present very high level of atmospheric greenhouse gases is. A little less CO2 will not halt the destruction of ecosystems like rainforests and coral reefs, nor stop the melting of glaciers, sea ice, and permafrost.
Decades of research on climate point to a solution:
While saving energy and resources, we must invest in sequestering huge amounts of carbon, using proven and innovative methods like growing much more vegetation and preventing dead plants from burning or decomposing.
Underneath the activism towards carbon neutrality, we need grassroots activities that promote a nationwide movement that will, in time, demand the needed radical, comprehensive, government response. We must greatly reduce atmospheric CO2 and methane levels, reduce consumerism, and restructure our economy. Otherwise global warming cannot be reversed – modern civilizations will be doomed.
Global warming is a ‘frog in the pot’ problem. But we are not frogs, and people largely ignore what needs to happen because they assume that everybody else behaves like the frog; and some may think “why should I initiate grassroots activities?
The other issue: People trust “middle-of-the-road” projections – that is outrageous. If a new airplane is marketed, some engineers love it, some say little, but some emphasize that the plane is definitely not safe. What airline would buy it? Who would want to fly in it? We must not gamble with the world’s future by trusting optimists. People also must know that there are points of no return: a melted glacier, a destroyed rain-forest or coral reef ecosystem will not recoup when the world will cool some.
Governments must take emergency measures: The world needs efficient transportation systems, use of wood and bamboo for most building needs, largely plant-based diets, and most importantly, over a trillion additional trees, as well as much bamboo and many other fast-growing plants. Dead plants must then be preserved in ways that do not release its carbon as CO2 and other greenhouse gases.
We all must work towards strengthening such grassroots activities, building a nationwide powerful movement within a reasonable time. And we may remind each other, living simpler, more cooperative, compassionate, closer to nature and closer to each other, we will be healthier and happier.

Previously discussed:  Everybody has a responsibility – we must avert the climate debacle: more and more land becoming unlivable, mass migrations and worldwide violence in addition to the deadly weather catastrophes.  What to do? Something that has no measurable effect versus …? That’s to be discussed. The world is rapidly moving towards-past points-of-no-return and worsening instability – but people do not want to think about bad news. However, we all have an ethical obligation to work on moving towards a radical, effective government response, move the needle of public opinion, encourage writers and activists to speak out more forcefully – for young people’s sake. (Electric cars, ‘everything electric’ are not the answer.) Please plan to come to this meeting, or help us set up other meetings; bring a friend – and please tell everybody you know about humanecivilization.org .
A  nationwide movement must demand real, government-led climate action. What went wrong in the development of humans?
Recently, scientific data and news about disasters lead many to feel hopeless.
Developments have been self-propelling, out of control. Economic growth is misguided, making people unhappy and destroying the world as we know it.
As during WWII, our government must direct industries, halt consumerism and waste, employ people to plant the trillion trees we need, build rail lines, etc.
HCW proposals are based on thinking in radically different ways, ‘out-of-the-box.’ We describe comprehensive plans of redirecting our misguided economic activities to save our world and civilizations. See humanecivilization.org/climate-emergency
We must educate ourselves, educate the people we know, contact influential people, and help create a nationwide movement, that demands emergency government action. If we lead, other nations will follow.

Meeting October 1 2024: The climate crisis: reason for cautious optimism. There are more and more ways to halt greenhouse gas releases, reduce methane and CO2, and to sequester carbon. humanecivilization.org contains some novel approaches along with summarizing well-known greenhouse gas-reducing activities. Obviously, a profit-driven economy will not realize what is needed. It will take time to come to a near consensus that radical, top-down government action is needed, comparable to the response in WWII. At that time it also took a long time – but after the Pearl Harbor attack, America woke up and the response was radical and effective – the Climate Crisis needs a ‘Pearl Harbor moment.’.

Meeting July 17/2024 evening:  Discussion meeting: Eco-anxiety is interfering with young people’s quality of life and functioning.
For more details see  blog, political. Please contact me for suggestions and/or if you would like to meet with me individually to discuss issues and progress.  hae.hcw@gmail.com..

Concerning Eco-anxiety: Some sobering data that was published in August 2023 (below, more of my thoughts). Harvard political reviews: Climate anxiety among international youth is at an all-time high. In a 2022 poll, “59% of youth and young adults said they were very or extremely worried about climate change and more than 45% said their feelings about climate change negatively affected their daily life and functioning,” according to CBS News.
Leaders of the Citizens Climate Lobby and other NGOs, many scientists, authors, and activists are afraid to discuss “doom” and a need for sacrifices, believing talking about present realities will “turn off” people, lead them to withdraw. We discuss catastrophic illnesses and dangers of accidents – but we are afraid of discussing how we rapidly move towards “climate hell”? It is hardly disputed that, if there are not very dramatic changes in developments, our and particularly younger relatives’ future will be very difficult and painful. And, humans readily embrace sacrifices that appear meaningful; in sports, people accept strenuous, and often painful practicing not just for oneself but so that communities and families feel proud; women have children and accept most of the hardships in raising them, which is very hard but greatly benefits their families; people voluntarily join the army; families turn their lives upside down for an injured or severely ill loved one, many people pull up stakes and, accepting dangers and sacrifices, migrate to other parts of the world; etc.
Hiding truths will not make eco-anxiety (or climate anxiety) go away, neither do seemingly meaningful actions that will not change the trajectory of developments.

Previous HCW meetings  after Covid interruption (when library closed) (for more details see  blog, political)

8/18/2022 The Climate Crisis and Ethics
9/22/2022 Addictions – Ethics – Climate
10/27/2022 Economics – Ethics – Climate
12/1/2022 The Important Questions In Life – Ethics? Health and Happiness? Climate?
1/5/2023 Happiness, Meaning in Life, and the Future
2/8/2023 Happiness, Meaning in Life, and the Future 2
3/14/2023 The Climate Crisis: Giving Up Is Not an Option. What are the most effective actions we can take?
4/26/2023 We must halt global warming and escalating fear may be the key to get needed, radical changes enacted
5/30/2023, The Climate Crisis and the Question of “Political Will”
7/6/2023: Corporate CEOs and Politicians Gamble With Our Future: How Can We Stop Them?
8/8 /2023: What does it mean “I care about what global warming does to the world of our children, to the most affected poor?
9/26/2023 Discussion Meeting: Humane Civilization Worldwide: Review of goals and activities.
11/14/2023 What is basically wrong with modern cultures? Is the focus of education what individuals and societies need?

1/5/2024 Thinking about the climate: How serious is the crisis?
3/12/2024. Discussing human reactions to the climate crisis.
4/30/2024 With our weak climate actions: Are we complicit in a genocide?

 

 

 

 

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